Insert Self Here Ranma Years
by granderwishes
Summary: What do you do when you wake up in a world with a purple haired girls drive bikes through walls, a martial artist has more women after him than he can countand you get treated to a different view of a friend than everyone else? You deal with it.
1. The Begining?

Disclaimer: As all other Fanfic authors I claim no ownership, nor right to any of the character of said Anime/work of fiction (Ranma 1/2 in this case) other than those I explicitly create. I only own myself in this fanfic so far, and Thank the creator of Ranma 1/2 for an interesting world, and interesting characters to work with.  
  
Any Comments, constructive critisim can be sent to: granderwishes@yahoo.com. I will review them, take into account those that I think need fixing and will use flames to cook steaks.  
  
Warning: I have taken liberties with the characters from the Ranma 1/2 series, am NOT a fan of Akane's and think Genma should be broiled alive. I have seen only one ep of Ranma 1/2, but have read many, many fanfics and crossovers involving those characters and hope that I can do justice to the ideas put forth through the anime. If not, well this was a project for my own enjoyment and if you don't like how I treated some of the characters, or if I get something wrong, give me your two cents, and stop reading if you so need.  
  
Thank you for reading my story.  
  
If you would like to be notified when my fanfic is updated I have created a Yahoo Group named "granderwishesfanfic" that I will post notices too.  
  
-Ben  
  
Chapter 1  
The Beginning???  
  
I opened my eyes to the most beautiful site I had ever seen. Not half a foot away from my face was a pair of deep purple eyes. Being who I am and all, after the half minute it took me to break out of my shock, I scooted backward only to slam my head against a wall.  
  
"Owww. that wasn't the brightest move I ever... made? Um, I'm not speaking English am I?"  
  
The woman shook her head with a cutely confused expression on her face.  
  
I took a moment to look a little closer at her while massaging the bump that was forming on the back of my head. When I moved away from her eyes, which by the way looked a bit larger than normal for some reason, the first thing I noticed was the forest of silken purple hair she had. To say I was shocked would be an understatement as the hair looked natural to me. When I looked downward I saw that she wore a form hugging sleeveless emerald green dress with a deep crimson red flame trailing up the front right side, made of out a silk that has a sheen reminiscent of liquid silver that comes to down to mid thigh. Her skin had just the gentlest hint of a tan to it, and was quite smooth by what I could see from over six feet away. She was quite toned, definitely not the couch potato type from what I could tell.  
  
The only thing I could think of to say was, "You're beautiful." And then my mouth slammed shut from embarrassment.  
  
She seemed to smile a bit, and then stood up, "Well sir, you wouldn't be the first one to say that to me. Now that you've woken up, you should come downstairs to see Grandmother, she's been waiting days to hear your story." With that, she walked out of the room and I heard light steps descending a set of stairs.  
  
Not really knowing what was going on I figured I might as well follow the woman's advice. Standing up, I noticed a couple things right away. One, I was only wearing a pair of underwear. Two, I seem to have lost what I thought was almost a permanent part of me. Now I should explain, I have never been the small kid in school, town or otherwise. I have never considered myself huge, but I think large might describe me. I have, or should say had, a bit of a belly to me. Looking down, not only did I notice that I had a bit of a curve inward after my ribcage, but I actually had what could be described as the "six pack". and I wasn't even trying to suck in my gut.  
  
Now that I was looking I noticed a couple other changes as well. First off, my calves always used to be a bit on the larger side, even if they were a large percent muscle. Now they were the same size, but I don't think there was a bit of fat on them at all, and the rest of my legs followed suit. My arms, which were never my strongest limbs, now were seriously toned and were a good five and a half inches from top to bottom. The biggest shock was my chest. I had always thought that I was a bit broad across the shoulders at about eighteen inches, but now I think I was closer to two feet. I couldn't believe it, I don't think I had been this fit in my life.  
  
Deciding it was time I made my appearance, I found a pair of pants folded on a chair and put them on. They fit fairly comfortably and were nicely loose. I followed the purple haired woman down the stairs making a mental not to get the girls name, and entered what looked to be an Asian style restaurant kitchen. Looking around I spotted a quite short person cooking some noodles on a stove.  
  
Trying to lean against a wall out of the way of the busily cooking person I spoke up, "Excuse me, I was told there was someone down here who wanted to ask me a couple questions?"  
  
Without missing a beat the figure shouted something in a language I couldn't understand, and tossed a bowl full of noodles out what seemed to be a window into the main restaurant area. "That would be me. Let me finish the last of the orders and I'll be right with you child."  
  
I nodded my agreement and started to examine the rest of the room a bit closer. Nothing really looked too unusual to me till I noticed my reflection in the mirror. Now I know my hair had been reddish before, but now it was almost flame red. To top the weirdness off, running right down the middle was an inch and a half vertical stripe of what could only be described as midnight purple hair. As if in a dream I ran my hand through my short hair and found that there wasn't any signs of a dye job, like root color difference or anything. With a sigh I let the thought drop and chalked it up to another twilight zone happening in what was turning out to be a very confusing day.  
  
After about ten more minutes the figure cooking shouted out another phrase in that language and hopped onto a gnarled staff. I got my first look at its face and the only way I could really describe it was "wizened".  
  
"So child you finally woke up? I was beginning to wonder if you would ever do anything more than sleep after the condition that Xian Pu found you in. You should be thankful that she found you when she did, you had a lot of cuts and bruises."  
  
At that I looked down at myself in curiosity and saw that I couldn't find any sign of injury.  
  
"Ah, no child, your wounds healed up extremely fast, they were all gone by last night. I have seen few people heal on that level, one being my granddaughter, and I meant to ask you about that, but first introductions should be made. I am Khu Lon of the Joketsuzoku Amazons, and what is you're your name?"  
  
With a bit of astonishment I found that it was hard to call a name to memory. After a bit of silent concentration I replied, "Ben, I think. I can't really remember my last name, but I know my first is Ben, Khu Lon?"  
  
With a little bit of a smile Khu Lon continued, "Ah, it is unusual to see one around your age try to pronounce my name correctly, I thank you Ben. Now, as far as your healing ability goes, I was going to ask you, what form of the Arts do you practice?"  
  
As the only one thing made sense when 'arts' and healing were concerned I replied, "I practice no form of martial arts if that is what your asking. I can't really explain why I healed so quickly, in fact, I can't explain many things about myself at the moment. Looking in the mirror over there, I don't totally recognize the person looking back."  
  
"Hmm. that makes things interesting then doesn't it Ben? Well, where do you live in Nermia? Once we close I can have Xian Pu help you find your way home, or maybe Mu Tsu can help if we have a delivery close by."  
  
"Um. Nermia? That sounds familiar for some reason. Isn't that in Japan somewhere?"  
  
"Yes, where do you think you are? You're in the Nermia ward of Tokyo, Japan."  
  
"HUH? How the heck did I get to Japan??? I may not remember where exactly, but I know I live somewhere over in America, not anywhere near here."  
  
With that more than shocking revelation I began to get a little bit worried. I tend to prefer to know where my bases are, and finding out that I'm in a different country, no money with which to rent a hotel, eat or anything (I find it hard to believe I was carrying any on me when I woke up) definitely had me panicking a little.  
  
"Then I take it you have no place to go at the moment? Well in exchange for help around the Nekohanten I would be willing to let you stay here till you can support yourself."  
  
A bit shocked at the more than kind offer I nodded my agreement, "That would be very generous of you Khu Lon. I fear I've already stayed far longer than I should have while I was unconscious without doing something in return. When can I start helping?"  
  
"Well first you should go back upstairs to the room you were in and get a shirt and a pair of shoes from the closet there."  
  
I looked down at myself embarrassed remembering I was clad only in a pair of boxers and black pants. "Um right."  
  
Khu Lon smirked at my embarrassment and continued, "Then you can go along with Xian Pu on a delivery she's been meaning to make to get to know the area a bit."  
  
I bowed to her out of respect (it's what I remembered Japanese cultures doing) and started to head back up the stairs when out of instinct I ducked to my left while my hand shot up and caught something metal. I glanced at the knife I now held as I turned to face her.  
  
With a large grin on her face Khu Lon commented, "No training in the arts, eh?"  
  
I shrugged in response and casually tossed the knife back to the cutting board where it had lain when I came down the stairs, "None that I can remember."  
  
As I continued on up the stairs I could hear a thud as the knife connected with the board, and then a strange sound as if something was vibrating in place.  
  
* * *  
  
When I came back down the stairs I was wearing a short-sleeved loose dark purple shirt that buttoned up the front and hung down just past my waist, and a pair of black slipper like shoes.  
  
"I'm ready Khu Lon, is Xian Pu ready to make that delivery?"  
  
As I stepped off the last stair, the girl in the emerald dress came into the room and picked up a box sitting on the counter. Khu Lon had what I gathered was a small conversation with her in that other language before nodding to me.  
  
"If you'll follow Xian Pu she'll take you on a short tour through the city as you go to the Tendo Dojo."  
  
Bowing to thank Khu Lon I then turned to Xian Pu, "I want to thank you for helping me out when you found me Xian Pu. My name is Ben; it's a pleasure to meet you."  
  
Xian Pu nodded at me smiling, "its okay, I couldn't just leave you there. Come with me out back and we'll get going"  
  
As I followed Xian Pu out the back door, I began to wonder how far away this Dojo was that we were going to. I could remember not being the most avid walker in my "former" life and even with the improved body, wondered how long of a walk I could hold up to. To my surprise Xian Pu walked up to a bicycle sitting against the back wall of the restaurant, put the box in a basket located in front of the handlebars and climbed on.  
  
Scratching my head I joined her by the bike and said, "Well if your going to ride that take it a little slow at first at least, I'm not quite sure how fast I can walk, or run at this point. You might easily out run me if you go to fast Xian Pu."  
  
With a shake of her head she patted a basket located right behind her, "No, you'll ride here Ben. I'm quite sure I can pedal faster than you can run and I want to get to the Tendo Dojo quickly."  
  
Just the thought of trying to sit on the uncomfortable basket for a one way trip, not to mention coming back made me wince even before I considered another problem, "Well if your going to be going that fast, how am I supposed to stay on the bike? It's not like there are any hand holds or anything for me back there Xian Pu. One good bump in the road (little did I know) and I'm likely to fall off."  
  
Giggling a little she grabbed my arm and pulled me behind her on the bike, and then when I was seated she pulled my arm around her waist, "Just hold on to me Ben. Don't worry about it, you won't fall off."  
  
The fire burning in my cheeks made them red in embarrassment, but I shrugged and did what she said. Leaning forward a little to gain my balance while I put my feet on the back wheels pegs, I could smell the floral scent of her hair that was quite pleasant. Then started the worst bike-ride I had ever had in my life.  
  
From the moment her legs started pumping, scenery started to blur by. Now I will admit that that alone was quite exhilarating, but it was when she started to somehow hop 5 foot walls, or just ignore there was a wall there at all that I started to wish I had walked. I swear the first time we went through a half foot thick stone wall, I just about needed to change those pants. I don't know if she noticed my grip tightening around her waist, considering her stomach seemed to be all muscle, but the scream as we dropped the first 10 feet off one of the highways must have been noticed. Quite frankly I was surprised I survived the trip, and even more surprised that I remained conscious throughout the whole thing. I do have to mention that for some odd reason, after the first couple multiple story drops we took, I realized that the heights weren't really bothering me, yet I know I was afraid of heights before.  
  
When we finally arrived my grip had loosened back up around her waist and I was kind of enjoying myself. We stopped outside a gate outside the dojo. Looking around I spotted a sign in what looked like Japanese, but its meaning was clear as day to me. I was shocked, I could read quite easily "Tendo Dojo" in large black kanji. I noticed Xian Pu put the bike against the wall while pulling out the package from the front basket. She then walked to a wall around the back yard and seemed to almost sigh in resignation.  
  
After a moments pause she seemed to concentrate for a moment, stick her finger out to touch a certain spot on the wall and with a shout of "AIREN!, Shampoo here with too, too delicious ramen for you!" a small greenish light seemed to flash around her finger for a second, and then a large section of the wall seemed to blow in. Not even waiting for the dust to clear, Xian Pu seemed to "bounce" through the hole in the wall into the backyard.  
  
Now understandably before I could even think to follow her into the backyard I had to pick my jaw up off the ground. I had just not only witnessed someone blow in a wall with a touch, but I had also almost visibly seen Xian Pu's IQ drop. Even if I wasn't here to get to know the area so I could help out, I would've been heading through that hole in the wall out of plain curiosity at that point. The sight that greeted me when I stepped through that hole wasn't quite what I was expecting though.  
  
It was a fairly large yard, with what looked to be a fair sized fish pond in one corner and various kinds of vegetation otherwise, but what caught my attention were the large holes patched over in the backside of the house, the craters in the ground, and Xian Pu hanging onto a young man. He had black hair tied into a pigtail at the back, was wearing a red Chinese style shirt with what looked like a black dragon on the front, black kung fu pants, and black slippers which looked almost the same as mine. He was well built, although I would say I had a fuller frame than he did. He currently had a look of horror on his face as he looked at Xian Pu and a girl in a blue dress/skirt that seemed to be glowing between me and them.  
  
As I watched the man started to sputter a bit, "A. Ak. Akane its n. not what you think! Shampoo just burst in here and grabbed me, Honest!"  
  
Apparently the guy's words weren't soothing Akane's temper at all because the red glow only got brighter, and suddenly there was a large mallet in her hands. As she swung it back over her head to strike them, I did the first thing that came to mind.  
  
Pushing downward on the side of the mallet facing upward, I apparently caught Akane off guard because she overbalanced and fell backward As our eyes met I said, "You know, I don't know exactly what's going on here, but I don't think hitting those two with a wooden mallet. LARGE wooden mallet is going to help anything here Akane?"  
  
Instantly the area became bathed in a red light as Akane's glow became a flaming aura around her, "YOU PERVERT! I DON'T KNOW WHICH OF RANMA'S FRIENDS YOU ARE, BUT HOW DARE YOU TRY TO GIVE HIM A PEAK UP MY SKIRT?!?"  
  
My first reaction to her outburst was "huh???" as I don't know how her overbalancing could be interpreted as me trying to give Ranma over there (I assumed she was talking about the guy with a Xian Pu coat at the moment) a peak up her skirt that was long enough that she'd have to do a hand stand to show anything off. My second was "Oh shit!" as instead of going after Ranma and Xian Pu with the mallet, she now proceeded to get back up and start stomping over to me. Again instinct took over as she reared back and swung the mallet at my head VERY fast and I back-flipped out of the way.  
  
Akane continued to swing after my form as I tried to get out, "Hey wait." Duck horizontal swing to head "a second." Side-lunge out of a swing that left a dent in the ground, "CALM DOWN!" Jump straight up to avoid crippling blow to knees "would you please." Flip forward over her head as a diagonal swing almost dislocated a shoulder "stop it?" Finally on a whim I tried to catch the handle of the mallet under the head but ended up somehow putting my hand through it instead snapping the head free to put a second hole in the backyard wall.  
  
Before she could swing what was left of that handle at my head, or find something else to hit me with, Ranma touched a point on the back of her neck and she fell back into his arms asleep.  
  
"Sorry about that, Akane has gotten better about her temper in the past year or so, but she's still got a streak to her. My names Satome Ranma as you probably heard, what's yours?"  
  
"Um, mines Ben. Sorry, I can't really remember my family name off hand, no offence intended by that."  
  
Picking Akane up gently, Ranma started to walk to the back door of the Dojo, "Not a problem. Unfortunetly Akane's going to be out for a few hours and I feel guilty leaving her like this, but if you want to come back tomorrow I'd like to see a little more of your footwork there, maybe spar a bit. You looked fairly powerful and it's been a while since I've had anyone new to test my skills in the art against, Goodnight Ben, Xian Pu."  
  
He had shut the door to the house before I could even mention that I'm not a martial artist, or make a comment on the harsh glare he gave Xian Pu when he said goodnight. Shrugging, I followed as Xian Pu walked back out to the bike leaning against the wall. I caught up with her as she started to walk away from the Dojo looking quite depressed.  
  
"Okay Xian Pu first off what was that all about? Why were you hanging on Ranma like that and why did the temperature drop about ten degrees when he looked at you at the end?"  
  
With a sigh Xian Pu continued walking while studying her feet closely, "It's a long story Ben. Please drop it."  
  
While I was disappointed with that answer, I didn't like seeing her like that. Deciding to drop that line of questioning, I sped up a little and stopped her by putting my hand on her shoulder.  
  
"Ok I will, but can you at least explain to me why it seemed like your IQ dropped when you went in there?"  
  
As she turned to face me I could see the sadness in her eyes, "That also is a long story. Suffice to say, when Grandmother and I came here my Japanese was not so great. I earned a reputation as a stupid bimbo because I was unable to speak the language properly and was over enthusiastic in chasing Ranma."  
  
"Well obviously you've gotten the language down really well, and if you know you were too "enthusiastic" going after him, why don't you back off and show that the image is wrong?"  
  
I could've sworn I saw tears in her eyes as she turned away to get on her bike, "After an incident a couple years ago, Ranma won't trust me at all. If he will not marry me, my honor is gone, and my life is forfeit. I fear that if I show that I am not the bimbo everyone believes me to be, that he will believe that I did everything to hurt him and not that most of them were mistakes. If he does that he will turn away from me forever and I would have to commit seppuku."  
  
Before I could even begin to respond to that statement, the clouds above our heads decided they wanted to add to problems and started to pour. I heard a small "eep" come from in front of me followed by the bike hitting the ground as I looked up at the sky.  
  
Sighing I turned to look back at Xian Pu when I noticed something odd, "I love the rain it's always so. Peaceful?"  
  
On the ground in front of me lay Xian Pu's bike and what looked to be the emerald green dress she was wearing. As I watched in amazement a small lump crawled out from inside the neck of the dress to reveal a cute purple furred cat with a pale pink lace bra hanging off the side of it's head and what I thought was a very depressed expression, at least for a cat.  
  
Thinking myself nuts I said, "Xian Pu is that you?"  
  
The cat padded over and sat on the middle of the dress and nodded slightly. I stood the bike upright with it's kickstand and put her shoes into the front basket, picked Xian Pu up placing her dress and with a minimum of embarrassment her bra and panties next to the shoes.  
  
"Well as I'm guessing Khu Lon will know what to do here, think you can guide the way home? I'll pedal you point?"  
  
After settling herself down in the basket Xian Pu Nodded and pointed a paw in a direction.  
  
I put the kickstand back up climbing onto the bike and said with a smile, "You know, you make a cute cat Xian Pu. Almost as cute as when you were human."  
  
As I started to pedal I thought I saw something strange on her face but then had to turn as she pointed to a side street. Besides. cats can't blush can they? 


	2. On the advent of Hair Styling

Disclaimer: As all other Fanfic authors I claim no ownership, nor right to any of the character of said Anime/work of fiction (Ranma 1/2 in this case) other than those I explicitly create. I only own myself in this fanfic so far, and thank the creator of Ranma 1/2 for an interesting world, and interesting characters to work with.  
  
Any Comments, constructive criticism can be sent to: granderwishes@yahoo.com. I will review them, take into account those that I think need fixing and will use flames to cook steaks.  
  
Warning: I have taken liberties with the characters from the Ranma 1/2 series, am NOT a fan of Akane's and think Genma should be broiled alive. I have seen only one ep of Ranma 1/2, but have read many, many fanfics and crossovers involving those characters and hope that I can do justice to the ideas put forth through the anime. If not, well this was a project for my own enjoyment and if you don't like how I treated some of the characters, or if I get something wrong, give me your two cents, and stop reading if you so need.  
  
Thank you for reading my story. You can find my site at geocities under granderwishes/index. I can't type the whole web addy out because for some reason Fanfiction net tends to blank out most of my story because of it. You can also find a link and get updated as soon as I post a new chapter to my site if you join my yahoo group under granderwishesfanfic.  
  
-Ben  
  
Insert (self) Here  
Chapter 2  
On the advent of Hair styling.  
  
We arrived back at the Nekohanten after an enjoyable bike ride (at least opposed to the trip to the dojo) and I parked the bike against the wall. As I picked up her shoes Xian Pu hopped down from the basket and entered the back door of the kitchen. I followed her after grabbing the rest of her clothes and found her sitting on a counter as Khu Lon finished cleaning up the stove.  
  
"Ah, I see you've learned about Xian Pu's curse Ben. Please don't hold it against her, she can't really control that she has it."  
  
"Heh, no problem. I actually like cats quite a bit and think she makes a rather good one. But um. can we turn her back?"  
  
"Oh that's no problem she turns back with hot water. if you will?" she pointed at the clothes in my hand with a bit of a smirk.  
  
Blushing a bit I deposited the clothes next to Xian Pu and walked out the back door saying over my shoulder, "Ahem, I take it the transformation doesn't include clothes. I'll wait out here till she's dressed."  
  
Hearing a little bit of giggling I felt a hand on my shoulder and turned to find Xian Pu dressed, smiling and standing next to me, "Your easily embarrassed aren't you Ben?"  
  
I chuckled a bit nervously and stared at my feet as I followed her back into the restaurant, "Um, well. ah you see. Well it wouldn't be right if I saw you transform back if you don't have clothes on. I wouldn't feel right just turning my back or something."  
  
She guided me back into the kitchen and said over her shoulder, "Well I'm dressed now so no need to worry about that."  
  
Once back in the kitchen I asked, "So does that happen every time you get wet or something?"  
  
Xian Pu nodded starting to make some tea, "I turn into a cat every time I'm splashed by cold water, and turned back with Hot. It's one of the many curses of Jusenko."  
  
Chuckling a little I leaned against the counter next to her, "You ever think of just carrying an umbrella around with you? I could see how it'd become annoying though. As much fun as experiencing life in a different form would be, I'd definitely want more control of it than that. Taking a bath must be an experience, hairballs and all"  
  
I saw her frown a bit at my teasing and smiled to try and ease her mind, "Hey I'm just teasing Xian Pu. I'm not the type of guy that generally makes fun of people, and as I've already said I like your cat form, it's cute."  
  
Xian Pu rolled her eyes a little bit, but did stop frowning after that. I felt a bit tired after a fairly eventful day and asked Khu Lon where I would be able to sleep. She informed me that I would be able to stay in the room I woke up in, and tomorrow would be given some money to go get some clothes of my own. Thanking her I walked back up the stairs, laid down, and tried to ignore the questions racing through my mind as I got some sleep.  
  
* * *  
  
I awoke to the sound of someone opening the drapes in the room. In my mind I was thanking the Kami that I slept in those pants from yesterday and didn't go down to my boxers as the heat made me consider. As I opened my eyes my suspicions were confirmed. Over by the window Xian Pu was leaning against the wall dressed in pastel blue loose fitting pants, a tunic that was a couple shades darker than the pants, sky blue slipper-shoes, and she was looking at me with a grin on her face.  
  
After pulling the blanket up over my head I asked, "You ever hear of privacy? What if I had slept in the nude or something Xian Pu?"  
  
With amusement clearly evident in her voice she replied, "Then Xian Pu sell tickets. Tendo mercenary not only one who know to make money."  
  
Rolling my eyes I stood up and stretched, pulling the kinks out of my back (dang the floor is harder than I thought) and turned to face her, "You know I hope you don't keep the idiot act up around me, I really don't like seeing you belittle yourself like that."  
  
I bent over and started to fold up the futon out of habit (. wait a minute habit? How would that be habit? I can't remember sleeping on a futon before.), and with an eyebrow raised in confusion over her statement continued, "I doubt you'd make much money off selling tickets to see me sleep Xian Pu. To make money with tickets there generally has to be someone, or something that people would want to see."  
  
As I put away the futon she walked over to me and put her hand on my shoulder "You don't think that your all that attractive or something Ben?" she glanced up and down my form, "Your not exactly ugly there."  
  
Sighing I looked down at myself, "Oh yeah, new body. Well, I wasn't exactly born with this body Xian Pu. I mean, the face looks familiar and all, but I've never been quite this. fit before. I'm not complaining about it, but it's easy to forget about."  
  
Xian Pu gave me a small hug before stepping back outside the room, "Your body isn't the only thing you have going for you Ben. I haven't known you for more than a day, but I'm glad I do."  
  
Shocked I stood there for a minute as what she just said registered. Breaking out of my trance I quietly said "thank you Xian Pu" and then headed toward the bathroom to wash up.  
  
* * *  
  
I stepped off the last stair into the kitchen to see Khu Lon washing down the stove, "Khu Lon, let me do that to repay you for your hospitality. I would like to start repaying your kindness as soon as I can."  
  
Khu Lon looked in my direction shaking her head, "No, today you are going to go get some clothes and other necessities. Take the money sitting on the counter there and find Xian Pu. She will take you to the local mall and help you pick out some decent clothing, and then you two can have some fun if you want. You will start taking a shift tomorrow. Now go, today isn't likely to get too busy so don't worry about it."  
  
I grabbed the money off the counter and bowed to Khu Lon. I then went in search of Xian Pu who I found standing outside the front of the restaurant.  
  
With a smile I asked, "Ready to go Xian Pu? Khu Lon told me that you were going to show to the mall and 'shudder', help me pick out some clothes" Smirking, Xian Pu gestured to her bike, "Sure we can use my bike to get there this time too."  
  
As she climbed on and motioned for me to take my seat, I chuckled nervously as I sat down thinking, "Great, another death ride. Well, hopefully this time she'll take it a bit slower."  
  
To my misfortune, as usually happens when your life is potentially in danger, I was wrong. Apparently last night she was trying to not scare me because she started pedaling the bike twice as fast as before. With a slightly off kilter chuckle I gave a mental shrug, and just relaxed. I came to the realization that there are far worse ways to die than to wipe out on a bike at incredibly high and fun speeds with my arms around an attractive woman.  
  
We ended up passing through a mess of streets before arriving at the mall, and after parking and locking the bike up entered. It was fairly early afternoon so for the most part the mall was fairly empty of customers, though there were small knots of people here and there.  
  
Xian Pu led the way up onto the second floor of the mall pointing to a smaller looking clothing store. With a little bit of a sigh I followed her (hey, I kind of wanted to look around a bit first) and found myself in a store that sold clothing that looked vaguely familiar. Glancing around I winced as I saw a familiar woman from last night. I noticed Akane pointing out a silken shirt that looked vaguely similar to the one on the man standing next to her.  
  
Before I could even string two thoughts together there was a shout of "AIREN" from beside me and a purple headed bluish blur glomped onto Ranma. I sighed as I walked up next too Ranma with his Xian Pu coat, and Akane. Akane's red glow had come back and she was not looking happy.  
  
Gently trying to pry Xian Pu off Ranma I whispered to her, "Please not now Xian Pu. Don't start this in the mall, we really don't need any cops or anything picking us up. Please just let go of him and let the glow-stick over there calm down, okay?"  
  
Reluctantly Xian Pu let go of Ranma just in time for me to realize I had said the last bit a little too loud.  
  
"GLOW STICK??? Is that supposed to be some insult about the way I look?"  
  
Akane stepped within arms reach of me glowing like a stoplight. Her arm reared back for a punch at me as I saw out of the corner of my eye Ranma hit his forehead with his palm and start forward, but before he could get close Akane launched a punch at my face. Surprising myself I caught her hand in mine, and twisted around so her arm was behind her back.  
  
"No, I didn't mean that as a comment about your looks Akane, I was referring to how you could light up the store in a blackout with that glow coming off you. Now calm down and I'll let go, ok?"  
  
I could feel her tense against me and try to pull her arm free while glaring daggers at me. That's why it almost took me by surprise when, accompanied by a shout of "Die Ranma, Shampoo is MINE!", three small throwing daggers where hurled my way. Out of pure luck I was able to push Akane out of the way, but took a cut across the arm in return. Looking for the source of the voice I spotted a tall dark haired man wearing dark purple loose pants, and a white robe that covered his hands.  
  
Next to me Xian Pu yelled out, "Moose stop that! That isn't Ranma, it is Ben our guest at the Nekohanten!"  
  
Unfortunetly for me it appeared Mu Tsu wasn't listening to anyone at the moment. As soon as he landed landed from his jump he took to the air again launching chains from his sleeves. With a slight nudge from instinct I reacted quickly grabbing as many of the chains as I could, then tugged and sent Mu Tsu flying out the front of the store into the mall.  
  
Praying that I didn't throw him into anyone I asked no-one in particular, "I don't suppose he'll give up that easily will he?"  
  
And to my surprise no-one (or Ranma in this case) decided to answer, "Nope, he never does. He'll be back in a second."  
  
With a sigh I turned to Xian Pu, giving her the money, "If you would please pick out some clothes for me while I try to stop this." I pointed to a couple shirts and continued, "I like that style, that style and that style if you can find anything decent. Now if you'll excuse me."  
  
As I turned and headed out of the shop I noticed Ranma following, "I take it you want to come and watch?"  
  
Ranma shook his head slightly, "No actually Mu Tsu is fairly powerful. I'm coming along to make sure you don't get your neck cut off, we haven't had our sparring match yet."  
  
Shaking my head with a smirk I led the way out into the mall to look for Mu Tsu knowing this was going to be an interesting day.  
  
* * *  
  
It took about ten minutes to find Moose wandering around the entrance to the mall with a scowl on his face. On guard I walked up to him, "Okay now Mu Tsu, before you start anything listen. I'm not Ranma, and even if I were that is no excuse to attack in a public store with innocent people in there. You almost hit Akane, and the clerk is lucky she was on the other side of the store. What would Khu Lon think?"  
  
Mu Tsu turned with a growl and glared at a plant off to the side, "I don't care what Cologne thinks, Ranma doesn't deserve Shampoo! All he ever does is ignore her or use her as a free meal ticket!"  
  
Shaking my head I noticed his glasses on top of his head and quickly knocked them in front of his eyes, "Really? And how do you deserve her? I've just met you and I can already tell you have a lack of respect for Xian Pu. You're of her tribe and refuse to say her name properly. You act as if she's a piece of property to take from someone else. Have you ever even talked to her about this? Does she want you to interfere with this?"  
  
He shook his head dropping into a fighting stance, "Say what you want, I will no longer sit by and watch as he mistreats her!"  
  
Behind me I heard Ranma sigh as he looked at Mu Tsu, "Okay, but if we're gonna fight let's do it outside. Agreed?"  
  
Nodding in agreement Mu Tsu followed Ranma outside the mall and took up a stance opposite him. Rolling my eyes a bit I followed the two outside to watch the fight.  
  
To say the fight was a sight to behold would be understating it. Mu Tsu seemed to be pulling everything he could think of out of those robes of his and throwing it at Ranma. As I watched various bladed items flew from his hands while Ranma seemed to bounce around off any available surface, changing directions like some large hunting cat. It was such a display of aerial acrobatics on Ranma's part that I almost thought I was at some sort of circus.  
  
Ranma touched down for a second on the parking lot as Mu Tsu threw a handful of throwing stars. Ranma immediately did a standing back flip about 15 feet into the air, somehow got enough grip from a wall of the mall to launch himself forward Mu Tsu spinning like a top. I could just make out a faint blue glow coming from him as he pulled his arm backward (try following a single blade of a ceiling fan with your eyes, it tends to be a little hard to make out details at times) and tensed. With a shout of "Hiyruu Shoten HA!" his fist rocketed forward in an uppercut motion.  
  
For a second or so I thought all the spinning had confused him and he punched early, but then out of the blue a strong wind picked up. I could see the surprise on Mu Tsu's face as a dark funnel of air blasted into his chest throwing him violently skyward and off to the south. Landing with a flip and a smirk Ranma turned to me, "Hiyruu Shoten Ha revised, Aerovault."  
  
I looked at him in shock, "I'm not even going to ask how you did that. Let's just go inside and see if those two have killed each other."  
  
* * *  
  
Back inside the mall Ranma and I found Akane and Xian Pu calmly examining shirts in the store we left them in. Walking over I said in amusement, "Well apparently you two weren't all that worried about us huh?"  
  
Akane gave me a look that screamed "are you nuts?" as she leaned against Ranma, "With Ranma there? Why would I be worried about a fight between him and Moose?"  
  
"Eh never mind. Did you get anything picked out there Xian Pu? I should probably try anything on so we can get out of here."  
  
Motioning over to a pile of clothes sitting over a rack Xian Pu replied, "Yes, Shampoo only guess size. Shampoo hope Ben like clothes."  
  
With a sigh I went over and picked up the shirts and pants muttering under my breath about Xian Pu's bimbo act again. I went into the changing room and seeing as most of the clothes were the same size chose a pair of black loose fitting pants reminiscent of Ranma's, and a deep purple silken shirt with long sleeves and a high neck. Finding they fit I stepped out of the room to see what their opinion was. Getting a thumbs up I picked up the rest of the clothes, some other necessary items, and paid the cashier.  
  
Walking out of the store with a couple bags in my hands I turned to Xian Pu, "So what else? There's still a little money left over, and Khu Lon did say to have some fun."  
  
From behind us came Ranma's voice, "Well if you two would like, Akane and I are going to go get something to eat, you're welcome to come."  
  
A glance at Akane to make sure there wasn't another light display, I looked at Xian Pu, "Well? I'm kinda hungry and wouldn't mind spending some more time out in public. What do you think Xian Pu?"  
  
She shrugged looking at me, "Shampoo not mind. Great-Grandmother no tell Shampoo have to be back at certain time, so no rush."  
  
I smiled looking back at Ranma, "Well, lead on then. I'm really new to the area so if you have someplace specific in mind we'll follow I guess."  
  
Nodding Ranma headed for the exit to the mall, "I know just the place. It's not as good as a friend of mine's but it's closer.  
  
With a smirk I bowed before Xian Pu and motioned her toward the doors. She only sighed and shook her head at me but I could swear as I opened the door for her she had a slight smirk.  
  
* * * It didn't take us more than five minutes to reach the place Ranma was talking about. It was located next to an arcade that looked fairly interesting. After entering the restaurant we found a booth and sat down. When the waiter came over and asked us for our orders I looked at Ranma asking if there was anything he suggested. He just smirked and told the waiter to bring 4 of his usual, specifying that 3 be smaller portions.  
  
All four of us made a bit of small talk waiting for the orders to arrive. I learned some interesting things about Ranma and Akane, and related what little I could remember about my life. When the food came my eyes almost popped out of my head at the amount that was put in front of Ranma. It looked like it would take the three of our meals combined to equal what he had ordered.  
  
As for what the meal was, I didn't recognize half of it. Being Japan there was a lot of fish and rice, but I couldn't begin to name even ten percent of the items placed in-front of me. About the only thing I really had any clue about would be the sushi. Grumbling my stomach gave me the clue to start eating, and I figure who am I to argue with good sense?  
  
I tried to keep an eye on the others as they ate to make sure that I didn't do anything really wrong when eating (I had heard that some places like Japan tend to be very formal about how they eat some things) but after seeing Ranma tear into his food I figured as longs I minded my manners that I would be okay.  
  
After we had finished and left the restaurant I thanked Ranma for the suggestion and made a mental note of the location. I knew the next time I had some spare money I was coming back to eat there.  
  
Starting to head away Ranma looked over at me, "Well Akane and I need to be heading home, and remember I still want to spar with ya so you need to stop by the dojo soon. Later Ben. Shampoo."  
  
When Ranma had walked out of hearing range I heard a sigh come from next to me, "You know I really think you should explain things to him Xian Pu. Ranma seems a good enough guy that he'd probably try to help you through the problem."  
  
She just shook her head and leaned against the wall of the arcade. "Ranma would never forgive me. I just have to live with the situation as long as I can and find a way out of it.  
  
There seemed to be more sighing going on between the two of us that the expelled air could've inflated a hot air balloon at that point. I glanced up at the arcade and made a decision, "Okay well your coming with me Xian Pu. I don't know if your much into videogames but I think you need to do something to cheer up, and this arcade if fairly convenient."  
  
Xian Pu sighed a bit as I led her into the arcade and got some tokens. Sitting with her in-front of a game that vaguely reminded me of a cross between Gauntlet and street fighter we started playing. It took a little bit, but she did eventually get interested and was soon racking up points as she bashed her way through hordes of enemies. I eventually ran out of tokens and excused myself saying that I'd be right back. Wandering back to the token machine I hard a familiar voice coming from one of the videogames set by the window.  
  
"Minako! You just broke the high score. I wish I was as good as you at Sailor V!"  
  
Stopping in my tracks memories flashed through my head of girls in short skirted school fuku's. Just as quick as the memory comes it is gone and I am left with only an image of a couple girls standing in the background crying a little, one with a really strange hairstyle that looked like two little balls on top of her head (I feel a strange sense of respect and admiration for her), while a girl in a similar outfit with a dark purple skirt leaning over me giving off a slight pinkish glow.  
  
Her Fuku seemed to be torn badly in places, almost to the point of indecency. As the image fades I hear a voice drift through the fog, "Usagi! Please help him, use the crystal. Don't let him die!"  
  
The last thing I see is the girl with the strange hairstyle walk up and put a hand on her shoulder, "I'm sorry Hotaru, I can't do anything. Whatever that. bug was that hit him did too much damage."  
  
After that all I can hear is crying until my head clears and I see a couple people giving me strange looks. I grin a little in embarrassment and walk over toward the front window of the arcade. Once everyone stops looking at me I glance toward the two girls I heard earlier. One of them had her hair done up in the same style as Usagi from the memory. I waited till they got up from their game and the two blonds where heading toward the exit when I step out next to them.  
  
Tentatively I asked, "Usagi? Is that you?"  
  
* * * 


End file.
